Before and After
by DiBye
Summary: As the two walked down the hall together the sound of laughter could be heard. It was indeed the beginning of a beautiful friendship. And maybe, just maybe, something more. This is my response to PHM Challenge # 6 It's a Nick/Macy OneShot.


**Authors Note****: This is my first JONAS fic. I know it's a little dark for the fandom but I wrote it for the Pure Horace Mantis Challenge 6. I hope you all like it. Please let me know what you think. I messed with time lines a little and fooled around with Macy's history. But it's not hard to follow. Please post comments and let me know how it was! Thank you for reading.**

"_**I'm standing here but you don't see me; I'd give it all for that to change" Before the Storm**_

**Before and After**

* * *

"Good game Misa. That last spike was incredible."

"Thanks Charlie." Macy smiled and waved goodbye to the older boy.

Charlie Wilson was the cutest boy at Horace Mantis High School. Other than the members of JONAS of course. But it wasn't really fair to compare every boy to the Lucas brothers.

"AH!" The deafening shriek of fan girls filled Macy's ears. She would know that scream anywhere. She had once perfected that scream. It was the all consuming sound of JONAS fans. And the sound was getting closer.

"What the…?" Macy looked around in confusion. None of the Lucas brothers had come to her Volleyball match today. Each one had claimed to be busy. Even Stella had bowed out of coming in favor of a sale at the mall. And that was completely fine by Macy. She did much better if she could focus entirely on her game performance and not the people in the crowd.

"It's Nick of JONAS!" She heard a girl scream. Next came the thunderous sound a stampede. This situation could only end one way.

"Macy! Oh my god, Macy you've got to help me!" Nick Lucas grabbed her by the shoulders and looked around in panic. The poor boy was in the middle of a run for his life. All he had wanted to do was pick up his algebra book from his locker. This would most definitely teach him to be more careful about remembering books. JONAS fans; they could sure be persistent.

"Nick? What are you doing here?" She questioned in naïve confusion. The famous boy looked over his shoulder as the sound of screaming fans grew more and more near.

"Macy, I need a place to hide. _Now_." He looked at her dead in the eyes, trying to convey his urgent need to vacate the premises. It wasn't every day that Nick Lucas requested Macy Misa's help. Sure she had aided the band more and more over the last few months. But Nick himself was reluctant to ask just about anyone for help.

"A place to hide?" She wondered to herself.

"Macy!" He ground out in frustration. Just then a loud scream sounded. Macy and Nick turned at the sound. A young girl with pink steaks running through her hair stood about twenty feet away from them, pointing and yelling.

"Oh right, crap." She muttered. As a hoard of fans joined the girl, Macy took Nicks hand firmly in her own. "This way." She demanded before yanking him forcefully behind her.

The two ran faster than Nick had ever ran in his life. They took about a million turns before losing sight of the screaming girls. Finally, Macy swung open a door and shoved Nick inside. As he stumbled into the dark area he heard the faint sound of screaming girls still lingering through out the halls of the Horace Mantis. As he fumble for a light switch, his hand connected with a set of soft fingers.

"Shh" A voice whispered, "We'll stay here until it's safe." Macy explained.

"Where exactly is _here_? Ouch!" Nick grunted as he tripped over something hard and large.

"Oh right, this is…" And with those words, Macy reached up and pulled on a cord. Light illuminated the small space that they were sharing.

"A janitors closet?" Nick deadpanned. He was hiding in a janitors closet, this is what fame had rewarded him with.

"The finest janitors closet in all of Horace Mantis High!" She smiled brightly.

"Right." He muttered, running a hand through his hair.

"I can't believe I'm in a janitors closet with Nick of JONAS." Macy squealed quietly. Nick rolled his eyes in frustration. He had escaped one crazy group of fans only to be trapped with the queen of all JONAS lunatics. Okay, so that was a little harsh.

"Maybe we should just… not talk." He offered, trying not to sound as annoyed as he felt. But the deflated look that passed over Macy's face let Nick know that he had failed.

"Of course." She smiled tightly.

"I didn't mean…" He tried to correct his previous error but stopped short when the light clicked off and darkness encompass the two.

"Now you don't even have to look at me. It'll be like you're here alone." She whispered before quieting. Nick struggled to find the right words. Words that would make her believe he really was a nice guy. Not some jackass with no patience or understanding.

"This isn't necessary." He tried while clicking the light back on, desperate to rewind the last few moments.

"It's okay Nick, I get it. I might seem oblivious but… I really do get it." Her voice was different. It didn't contain the usual perky undertones that Nick was so used to hearing. It was soft and sure. The girl he was stuck in a closet with wasn't the same girl that had knocked him out cold with a hockey stick. And with one final, sad look, Macy clicked the light off again. The darkness encompassed them completely. This time Nick left the light off, unable to continue looking at the heartbreak on her face.

"I don't think you do Macy." He sighed. Nick wasn't exactly sure when he and Macy had dove into this conversation. A conversation that was entirely too serious for a janitor's closet.

"Do you think I'm stupid?" She questioned bluntly. Nick was taken aback at her new demeanor. He had never imagined Macy talking that way to him or either of his brothers. Although it was too dark to see anything, he could picture a stern look plastered across her face. A face that was almost always smiling.

"I see it, you know. I see the way you and your brothers duck down the hall when you see me coming. I see the look on your faces when I walk into a room. I'll give you all points for diversity at least. Kevin looks startled, Joe looks terrified, and you look like… well you look like you sort of want to poke your eyes out. Or maybe mine." She muttered miserably.

"That's not true." Nick swallowed, feeling a huge weight press against his chest. He had a sinking suspicion that the weight was a truck load of guilt.

"Please don't condescend me. At least give me that much credit. I may be a naïve, oblivious, silly, obsessed fan. But I'm not stupid and I'm not a liar. I'm honest enough with myself to admit that I drive you all insane. And not always in a good way." She countered.

"Macy, we really appreciate how devoted you are to our band. I mean that." He replied with as much sincerity as he could muster.

"JONAS is my favorite band. That's just a fact Nick. I have pictures of you guys all over my room and in my locker. I know every single word to every single song you've ever recorded. I probably know as much about you as your own mother. And that's all fine. Except that… you guys go to the same school as me. And we all share the same best friend. So your band isn't just some cute hobby anymore. Now it's like this obstacle for me. Because I want to be normal and sane around you all, so badly. But that just isn't in the cards." When she finished speaking, Nick was literally stunned my her admission. He sat for a moment, soaking in the quiet words of Macy Misa.

"What about right now? I mean, you're talking to me like a normal person. You're talking to me like a friend." He finally answered. For the first time since entering this conversation Nick had grasped onto some semblance of a clue. He was beginning to understand Macy.

"It's dark." She admitted shakily. "In the dark, you're just a boy. A boy stuck in a janitors closet. You aren't Nick Lucas, a talented musician and superstar." Nick smiled at her admission. He could related to her sentiments. Because in the dark she wasn't the crazy, JONAS obsessed fan who basically stalked him and his brothers. She was just a girl who had taken his and ran away with him.

"I get that." He responded.

"Everyday when I wake up, I think to myself; today is going to be the day. The day that I go to school and talk to you and show you who I really am. But then I get to school and just… I can't. I can't get over it." The sigh underlying her truthful words spoke volumes. Macy Misa was sick of being herself. And that was just the saddest thing possible.

"I'm sorry." Nick found himself whispering.

"For what?" She replied.

"I'm sorry for not trying to understand. I'm sorry for not trying to get to know you." He knew that there was more he should be sorry for, but the words were lost to him at this point.

"It's not like I made it easy for you." She laughed lightly.

"Yeah, but still." A calm sort of quiet over came the small area. It was the kind of quiet that spoke volumes. The air was thick with words unsaid.

"When I was thirteen my mother left." The harsh crack of Macy's voice cut through the silence and sliced through Nick's heart.

"Macy…" His voice broke. _I'm standing here but you don't see me; I'd give it all for that to change _Suddenly Nick had never understood his own lyrics so completely. And the most amazing part is that he was feeling his own words through Macy.

"I'm doing it right this time Nick, I'm letting you get to know me." She explained. He nodded in the darkness, aware that she couldn't see his movements. But by some miracle she must have sensed it, because with out another word spoken from him, she continued.

"Like I said, I was thirteen when my mother left. It was a Tuesday. Her and my father got into this huge, huge fight. And, she walked out and never came back. He says that she was never really happy with him… with us." Macy paused for a moment to gain her footing. In that time Nick hesitantly reach over and felt his finger tips connect with her own. He rested his hand on top of hers.

"I didn't come out of my room for three days. I didn't eat, I didn't sleep, I was just so… lost. I couldn't get past the confusion and hurt. So I sort of hid myself away in my room. I would turn my radio on and just blare music. So loud that I couldn't think or hear or feel. It was the only thing that helped." She explained.

"It was October wasn't it." Nick finally spoke. She squeezed his hand in confirmation. "Our first album came out in October, when I was thirteen." He put the pieces of the puzzle together little by little. Maybe it was because he was the most perceptive, or maybe it was because she laid her cards on the table so shamelessly.

"When I would listen to JONAS I felt… I felt like I was going to be okay. Even after I came out of hiding I would listen to your music all the time. And then the band just became an obsession of mine. Instead of thinking about my mom or being sad, I thought about JONAS. I spent my time learning about you guys and creating fan pages. Being obsessed with JONAS had less to do with you and your brothers and everything to do with me and my avoidance." She finished, sniffling just a little. Nick was glad that the light was off. He didn't know if he could handle seeing her cry.

"Would it be weird for me to say that I'm glad it was JONAS that you listened to during those three days?" He questioned honestly.

"What do you mean?" She wiped her eyes and looked towards his voice in wonder.

"I guess, I'm just glad that our music helped you. It kind of makes me feel like I helped you. Like I was there for you even before we knew each other." He looked down and blushed. Once again thankful for the absence of light.

"Like we were friends before we were really friends." She finished his thought.

"Yeah." He quietly responded. The moment was broken far too quickly for either of their liking. The shrill ring of Nick's phone sounded in the small space. "It's Joe." He muttered.

"Right. It should probably be clear out there by now." Macy said, slipping her hand from under Nick's. She stood up slowly, feeling as though she'd just run a marathon. They had both become extremely emotionally spent through out their time together.

"Thanks." He responded as she opened the door hesitantly. The dim light of the hall way blinded them as they exited the closet.

"This place is like deserted." Nick observed.

"Yeah we ah, we kind of lost track of time. Sorry." Macy said looking away. In the light Nick could see traces of tears that had ran down her cheeks. Before he could stop himself, he reached out and outlined one with his fingers.

"I'm glad we ended up in that closet." He admitted, before retracting his hand and sticking it in his pocket.

"Hey look, I'm not even freaking out that I was in a closet with Nick of JONAS!" She joked, smiling brightly. Nick smiled back, unable to stop himself.

"I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship Mace." He laughed, slinging an arm around her shoulder.

"Well duh!" She countered, bumping him with her hip. As the two walked down the hall together the sound of laughter could be heard. It was indeed the beginning of a beautiful friendship. And maybe, just maybe, something more.


End file.
